Things are quiet in Washington. Congress has departed and left the city to the bureaucrats who are busy preparing endless new rules and regulations. Back home the legislators are "pointing with pride" to the enactment of more legislation benefiting municipal government than any previous Congress. Our solons will be reminding constituents of impressive new legislation on roads, water pollution, surplus property, social security, housing, library service, flood insurance and municipal water storage. Here are the details.

By all odds the single most important legislative enactment in this session of Congress is the Federal-Aid Highway Act. The Secretary of Commerce, in the second apportionment to the states since the President signed the road bill, has announced that $2.5 billion has already been allocated for fiscal July 1, 1957-58. Backbone of the enormous highway construction program is the 41,000-mile Interstate System. About 28,000 miles of this super highway system will be four-lane, divided highway, about 7,000 miles will be two-lane and more than 5,000 miles will be at least six lanes.

Of the estimated $27.5 billion to be spent for the Interstate System some $15 billion will be spent in traffic-choked urban areas. The federal government will pay 90 per cent of the cost of this construction and the states the remaining 10 per cent. In public land states the federal government will contribute up to 95 per cent of the cost. The new road undertaking is a balanced program and provides for greatly expanded federal aid for the Primary and Secondary systems and extensions of these systems in urban areas. About $5 billion will be spent in urban communities on these roads with the federal government and the states dividing the cost evenly.

In recognition of the tremendous importance of the new road building program to the nation, Congress, in the dying minutes of the session, passed a bill creating a new position of Federal Highway Administrator. He is to be appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate and will be head of the Bureau of Public Roads. The Administrator will determine policy for the new program and the present Commissioner of Public Roads will serve under him as technical director of the Bureau. Congress has made it clear that this is not a permanent solution to the problem and will be reviewing the administrative progress of the program when they reconvene.

Standards for the construction of the Interstate System were adopted on July 12 by the American Association of State Highway Officials and approved by the Bureau of Public Roads. The design standards incorporate all known features of safety and utility to provide safe and relaxed driving, economy of vehicle operation and pleasing appearance. Designed to meet traffic forecast for the year 1975, the standards are essentially the same as those used to determine the Interstate needs upon which the new road program is based. A limited number of copies of the standards are available, free of charge, from the Washington office of the American Municipal Association.

Congress appropriated the full $50 million for federal grants to municipalities for the construction of sewage treatment plants (Water Pollution Control Act). They also appropriated $2 million for grants to the states for pollution control activities. An additional $1 million was set aside for research and administration of the Act.

Grants are available to cities, counties and other political subdivisions of the states for planning of treatment facilities including the cost of engineering, architectural and legal costs. Grants are also available for treatment works construction including the plant and necessary interceptor sewers, outfall sewers and related pumping and power equipment. Federal grants are limited to 30 per cent of the cost of the planning and construction of the facility or $250,000 whichever is less. Funds may also be used for the expansion, alteration or addition to existing facilities.

President Eisenhower in his message accompanying the signing of the Water Pollution Control Act (P.L. 660), noted that he had directed the Surgeon General in administering the program to consider among other factors "the propriety of federal aid." The Surgeon General in compliance with these instructions is now trying to develop criteria for determining this "propriety." It is reliably reported that consideration is being given to establishing several different standards for determining the eligibility of a project for aid. Being discussed are such factors as the location of the plant on an interstate stream, necessity for complying with anti-pollution treaties with other countries and the uses to which the treated water will be put and/or a combination of all these factors.

Once the standards or criteria for federal aid are determined, the Public Health Service will make available an application form and related instructions for requesting aid. These are not note ready and are not expected to become available for a few weeks. Application forms will be distributed through state pollution control agencies and the Public Health Service in Washington. Applications for federal aid must be reviewed by both the respective state water pollution control agency and the Public Health Service. The application will first go to the state agency for certification as conforming to the state plan. It then goes to the PHS to determine if it meets the yet to be determined criteria for aid. Each state will then determine the priority for approved projects.

Distribution of federal surplus property to local agencies for civil defense purposes is being held up pending the issuance of rules and regulations by the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Originally scheduled for release in the middle of August the regulations have hit a snag caused by the failure of the Federal Civil Defense Agency to delegate its authority to HEW.

By the terms of the 1956 amendments to the Federal Property Act (P.L. 655) signed by the President July 3 and effective August 3, federal surplus property is to be made available free of charge to cities, counties and other units of local government for civil defense purposes. Surplus items which the Federal Civil Defense Agency determines to be of value for civil defense will be distributed to local civil defense organizations. Distribution is to be under the general supervision of HEW and is to be accomplished through state surplus property disposal agencies. These state agencies are already in existence and have been distributing surplus items for educational and welfare purposes.

During April, May, and June of this year some $49 million of federal surplus motor vehicles, X-ray machines, school and office equipment, motion picture projectors, bulldozers and hundreds of other items were transferred without cost to educational and welfare organizations.

Municipal employees covered by social security will benefit by the liberalized Social Security benefits approved by Congress and signed by the President on August 1 (P.L. 880). Women can now retire (with reduced benefits depending upon age) at age 62 instead of age 65. Widows can retire at age 62 with full benefits. Persons age 50 or over who become totally disabled are entitled to full benefits effective July 1957.

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On and after January 1, 1957 the employee's and employer's payroll tax will increase from 2 per cent to 2 1/4 per cent for each. The upper limit for which deductions are made remains at the present $4,200. Social security coverage is also extended on a local option basis to municipal policemen and firemen in the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Oregon, and Florida.

Now that the sound and fury of the animal blood bath over housing legislation has subsided, it looks like a draw. On the controversial question of public housing the President won. He got the 35,000 units each year for the next two years just as he requested. He lost on many other points where a divided Congress passed more liberal amendments than the President wanted. Everyone lost on the problem of providing adequate housing for the elderly. There will be almost none.

Highlights in the Legislation

The Housing bill which became Public Law 1020 with the President's signature on August 7 contains the following major provisions of interest to municipal officials:

•  As a prerequisite for obtaining additional low-rent public housing units the locality must have a workable program for the elimination of slums.

• vTo facilitate long-range planning, the Administrator may make advances to localities to prepare "General Neighborhood Renewal Plans." These plans may be carried out over a ten-year program rather than as a single project.

•  Payments of up to $100 for individuals and up to $2,000 for businesses are authorized to cover the cost of moving those displaced by an urban renewal project.

• In addition to the 35,000 units of public housing authorized for each of the next two years, the Act allows the carrying over of any of the 45,000 units authorized for 1956 and not put under contract when the Act expired (44,422 units were under contract on July 31, 1956).

•  To provide housing for the elderly, local authorities are authorized to specially design some of their existing public housing unit authorizations to accommodate the aged. No new units of low-rent housing were made available for this purpose.

• Payments in lieu of taxes to municipalities are authorized in some 11 localities where for technical reasons they were not previously allowed.

Cutting Red Tape

In an effort to streamline the present paper work requirements of the Urban Renewal Administration and to gear the program more closely to community operations the entire URA procedure is being overhauled. Many of these changes were supported by

Mayor Frank Zeidler of Milwaukee and William L. Rafsky, Philadelphia Development Coordinator, when they recently testified before HHFA representatives in behalf of the American Municipal Association. Among the steps that have been taken are simplification of the project report, increase of regional authority and simplification of the various progress reports and supporting documents required.

Federal aid is available for the establishment of library service to incorporated and unincorporated places of 10,000 population or less. The measure (P.L. 597) authorizes the expenditure of $7.5 million a year each year for the next five years (only $2.05 million was appropriated for fiscal year 1957) to provide library service to small towns, villages and rural areas. The program will be administered through the states. To qualify a state must prepare a plan for the extension of library service. Funds are distributed to the states on the basis of a flat allocation of $40,000 plus an amount based upon the states rural population as compared to the nation's total rural population. Participating states are required to match the federal funds.

Municipalities will be able to participate on an equal basis with private individuals in part of the $5 billion experimental five-year flood insurance program. State and local government units are allowed coverage under the flood and tidal wave insurance portion of the Federal Flood Insurance Act of 1956. Because of the nature of local government it is precluded from participation in the reinsurance program for private companies and the guaranteed loan program for flood victims.

Localities may insure publicly owned property up to a limit of $250,000 for any one political jurisdiction and up to $10,000 for any one structure. Each policy has a deductible clause making the insured responsible for the first $100 of loss plus 5 per cent of the balance of the claim.

In determining premiums the Housing and Home Finance Agency which is to administer the program is to set up a schedule of "estimated rate" based upon experience. The insured is then required to pay 60 per cent of this amount and the federal government will pay the remaining 40 per cent subsidy. Beginning July 1, 1959, states will be required to assume half of the cost of this subsidy or 20 per cent for all flood insurance written in the state if they choose to continue with the program.

President Eisenhower in his approval message called the new program "a venture into an untested field of risk protection (which) is admittedly experimental." He pointed out that private insurance companies had found no way to enter this field without risking being ruined by disasters of the magnitude of 1951 and 1955 when losses were $1 billion. Meetings are now being held in Washington by HHFA officials to work out the administrative details of the program. No rules and regulations have yet been prepared.

Local government won one and lost one in legislation to assist in the development of municipal water supply.

One That Failed

President Eisenhower in a move that stunned veteran Washington observers vetoed the Rivers and Harbors Act, which would have authorized the Corps of Engineers to make allowance for municipal water supply storage in planning big flood prevention projects. Had the measure become law, cities located near a dam would have been able to have the project enlarged to provide reservoir capacity without capital outlay for the additional construction cost. These costs, however, would have been repayable annually with interest over the 50-year life of the project. Since the President's veto was unrelated to this provision of the Act, there is a strong possibility that it can be reenacted in the next session.

One That Passed

On the positive side the Watershed and Flood Prevention Act was amended (P.L. 1018) to provide federal loans and technical assistance to smaller communities in the development of reservoir storage capacity at smaller dams in the headwaters of watersheds. Each of these dams which are multipurpose must have a sponsor, which can be a municipality or other subdivision of a state. The federal government assumes all the cost of the construction of the flood prevention facility. The local sponsor assumes the cost of land, easements and rights-of-way for the flood prevention facility as well as all the cost associated with expanding the project to include municipal water storage. Federal long-term, low-interest loans are made available to localities to help finance their share of the project costs.

Other restrictions established in the law are:

•  Federal funds under this program are available for structures which do not exceed 25,000 acre feet of storage capacity.

•   Loans to local sponsors are limited to 50 years and interest rates are fixed at the federal borrowing rate which varies from 2.5 per cent to 3.0 per cent.

•   Local sponsors must assume all cost of operation and maintenance of the completed project.

•   The staff of the Soil Conservation Service which is to administer the Act will provide technical assistance in developing watershed development projects.

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CONGRESS POINTS WITH PRIDE . . .
(Continued from page 177)

Rules and regulations for administering the program are being developed but are not available at this time.

By a twist of fate nearly every measure of interest to municipalities was still undecided, either as to authorization or appropriation when Congress approached the end of the line. In the preceding pages we have identified those that got through in the last minutes. Here are two that did not.

Payment In Lieu

Of those which fell by the wayside in the dying Congress none had broader local support nor a more vigorous champion than the payment in lieu bill. Senator Hubert Humphrey (D-Minn.) a former Mayor of Minneapolis, fought valiantly and well for a limited program of payments to municipalities in lieu of taxes on special local assessments, factory properties acquired since 1950 and federal property sold or leased on conditional sales contracts. All efforts were in vain in the face of persistent opposition from Senator Karl Mundt (R-S. Dakota) whose filibuster forced the measure to be set aside just four hours before Congress adjourned.

Aid to Depressed Areas

A bill that would have provided a liberal program of assistance to communities suffering from excess unemployment passed the Senate but died in the House.